The Omaha Meeting
by TerribleWaitress
Summary: A little one-shot that happened just because. Lenny, of course. Being in Omaha over Spring Break has its unexpected perks.


**A/N - So, sleep has been evading me recently, and I began writing this at some ridiculous time in the morning. Then I re-wrote it because... well, I wrote it at stupid o'clock, so I had to, really. And here is the final product :) Just a little one shot of a young Leonard and Penny. Hope you enjoy! **

* * *

"D'you mind if I sit here?"

Looking up at the teen blonde in front of him, Leonard felt himself blush as he nodded. "Sure. Go ahead." Pretty girls never asked to sit with him.

"Thank you." The girl grinned perkily as she sat down opposite him, putting her smoothie on the table between them. There was silence as he continued on what he had been writing before her arrival; clearly, he had no expectation of engaging in conversation with her. She, on the other hand, was curious about the graphs and diagrams he was working on. "What're you doing there?"

"Uh, just some work for my Physics class." Leonard shrugged, not looking up.

"But why? It's Spring Break."

"Yeah, but, I have nothing else to do and there's a lot of it to get done. Besides, it's quite interesting."

Scoffing, the blonde picked up her smoothie and took a sip through the straw. "If you say so. I can't believe you're doing homework in the break. I know I'm staying in Omaha over spring break but that homework is even _lamer_."

"Well, with all the free time, why not?"

"Whatever. Your football team sucks."

"What?"

"What?"

Confused, Leonard looked up. "Our schools team is actually pretty good. I don't play on it, but I know they're good."

"Uh, no, we _owned _you."

"Umm... I go to school in New Jersey." Leonard said awkwardly, suddenly realizing that this girl had probably been thinking that he attended whichever school she _didn't _attend. "So, even if your team is the best round _here_, I doubt you _owned _my schools football team."

"Oh." Penny blushed slightly. "Sorry. I didn't know that. I thought you went to... never mind. What're you doing in Omaha if you go to school in New Jersey?"

"My mother is doing a series of extra-curricular lectures with the University of Nebraska. So we're in Omaha."

"And you took your homework with you?"

"Yes."

"Nerd." She muttered under her breath, before taking another sip of her smoothie. This didn't bother Leonard; he was used to it. Being in a different state didn't suddenly make it an insult. The girl, despite her comment, continued to watch him as he went back to his work. "So why are you so into physics anyway?"

"All my family are into academia. This is the branch of academics that really interested me. Sure, psychiatry is interesting enough, and so is medicine, but the workings of the universe are _way _more fascinating than that."

"Sure, sure." Leaning forward slightly, she read his name at the top of what seemed to be an essay. "Oh, Leonard. Cool name."

"Not really. But thanks."

"I don't know anybody else called Leonard. I'm Penny."

"Hello, Penny."

"Hi."

"Hi." Leonard looked up and gave a timid nod. "I don't know any other people called Penny either."

"No, I don't know another Penny either. I have a grandma called Penelope, but I'm just Penny."

"That's nice." Leonard said sincerely, smiling politely, before returning to his work.

"Boy you _really _are into that work, aren't you?"

Looking up again, Leonard shrugged. "Yeah. I mean, random girls don't usually sit with me in coffee shops. Or start talking to me."

"Well, there were no empty tables." Penny pointed out, using one hand to gesture around the coffee shop, which had certainly gotten busier since Leonard's arrival. "So I had to pick the table with the cutest guy. And _usually_, the guy actually _talks _to me."

"Oh." Leonard simply stared at her for a few seconds. Being called cute was something he was not accustomed to. Neither was a pretty girl talking to him something that usually happened to him. She seemed very forward. "Well, I, uh, I... umm, I don't really know what to say."

"How about I tell you a bit about me." Penny suggested. "And you stop doing that homework."

"Okay. Sure."

"Well, as you know, I'm Penny." She grinned. "I'm fourteen and I got to high school, obviously. Not like Trisha Melrose who dropped out because she's _pregnant_. Can you believe it? She's fourteen! God, Mom would _kill _me. Anyway, I'm a cheerleader and I like to ride horses too. Umm... oh! I wanna be an actress when I'm older. Yeah. And... oh, my Aunt is getting married next weekend so we're getting our dresses today but I got bored because they're doing Dad's suit, so I came here. I like Green Smoothies."

_She talks a lot, _Leonard thought to himself. "That sounds cool."

"It is. Now you tell me about yourself."

"Uh... alright. I'm going to be sixteen in two weeks time. I like playing video games but I don't really play much sport because I have asthma and I'm not very good at it. Umm... I wanna study Physics when I go to college, and... I don't know what else to say about myself." He finished quietly.

"You could tell me..." Penny tilted her head. "What's on your t-shirt?"

"Huh? Oh." Leonard looked down at his t-shirt. "It's a molecule."

"Of what?"

"Caffeine."

"Ironic that you're wearing that at a coffee shop."

"I suppose it is."

"Do you like coffee?"

"It's alright. Sometimes if I stay up late I'll have a cup of coffee the next morning."

"My Mom says I'm too young to have coffee. But she says I'm too young for a lot of things, so, what does she know, right?" Penny giggled. "What're you drinking?"

"Hot Cocoa."

"Mmm, tasty. Maybe I'll have some tonight. Mom makes the _best _hot cocoa. See, we're talking!"

"We are." _Oh my God, I'm talking to a girl. Just talking. Casually. In a coffee shop. Because she wants to. _

"Not so difficult, is it?"

"I guess not. Do you know if there's a book store in this mall?"

"Of course I know. I always go to this mall. The other one sucks."

"Well... is there?"

"Yeah." Penny nodded. "If you've finished your hot cocoa I can take you there if you want?"

"Umm." Leonard looked at his cup and realised that it was, indeed, finished. "Sure."

"Do you need help putting away your homework stuff?"

"Huh? Oh!" Suddenly remembering that he had his homework here with him, Leonard shook his head. "No, that's alright."

"Cool."

As Penny sipped noisily at her smoothie through the straw, Leonard hurriedly put away his books and supplies into his back before swinging it onto his shoulder. "Okay, I'm ready."

"Book store ahoy!" Penny grinned, standing up.

To his surprise, she linked her free arm through his. She did it so casually and began chatting away about all the stores and how she had to buy a book for her Literature class anyway, he concluded that she was just a friendly, touchy-feely person. He didn't mind; in his head, he suddenly looked a hundred times cooler than he would if he was walking alone. As they arrived outside the bookstore, he realized both that he was grinning and that she must have asked him something, because she was looking at him expectantly.

"I'm sorry, what?"

"Were you even listening to me? I asked what you needed to get here."

"Oh. Just a new book to read, I finished the one I brought with me."

"Mm... so what kind of book?" Penny asked, as they made their way slowly into the book store.

"Dunno. I was reading a historic fiction novel so maybe another one of those, it was interesting."

"Hey, history! I'm good at History class." Penny announced proudly. "But I dunno where those books are. I know where the classic novels are though."

"Well I could always read one of those too."

"Good! They're my favorite. And not just because I have to read them for Literature class and I'm really good at that. But I actually like them. Take me forever to read but they're good." Penny explained, leading him over to the one section of the store she ever visited. "My friends think it's really weird that I like these books but, you know, whatever. My Dad says its good that at least I read something other than magazines. And my mom says its good to know these stories if I like acting because a lot of plays have similar themes and ideas, or are set in the same era. My Drama teacher said the same thing."

"That does make sense." Leonard agreed. "It's always good to have an interest in things that relate to what you love doing most."

"Uh-huh." Penny nodded, stopping. "Here we are."

"Ooh. There's loads!"

"Well yeah... since it's, you know, a _book _store." Penny rolled her eyes with a small laugh. "I'm gonna look for my book."

Leonard watched for a moment as she walked off to the back shelf to search for her book. He was slightly in awe of this incredibly confident, open and friendly girl who had sat down in front of him at the coffee shop and had now taken him here. Despite her apparent initial dislike of his nerdiness, she seemed to be enjoying this newfound company. He certainly was too; it wasn't often that people randomly came up to him and started a conversation out of the blue. He'd been in Omaha three days and the only person he had spoken with was his mother and whoever was serving food at the hotel restaurant each time he went for a meal. And even then it was just to say which option he wanted and to ask if it contained lactose. He chuckled slightly to himself. What were the chances that the first person he properly spoke to in Omaha was a pretty cheerleader with a liking for classic novels? Suddenly realizing that he was simply stood there, he turned to look at the books on the shelf nearest him. He recognised a few of the names, but these classic novels had never really been his forte. The only ones he'd read were the ones set by teachers, and that was with effort. But Penny liked these books, so he was going to buy one and read one. His head perked up at the sound of her voice, though he quickly realised that she wasn't addressing him. As she spoke, he realized that she must be on the phone.

"Hello? No, yeah, sorry, I know. No, I went to the book store. Ugh, no, I'm not _lost_. Leonard wanted to go there and I still haven't gotten that book for Literature so I'm looking for it now. Huh? Oh, this guy from the coffee shop. It's not like that! Whatever! Yeah, I'll come over once I get it. No, Dad gave me the money for it. Alright. Bye."

He continued for a few moments on his quest for a book, picking one up that had a 'Recommended' sticker on the cover. Just then, Penny came back over, clutching a book. "Looks like you found your book."

"I did." She nodded, looking at the book in his hands. "Ah, good choice! I have to go, my mom called and they're almost done, we have to get shoes now. Which is fun, I _love _shoes."

"Oh, okay. That sounds fun." Leonard smiled, though he felt a twinge of disappointment and sadness at the fact that she would be leaving now. It was strange; he wasn't one for spontaneous socialisation, but he had taken to her quite fondly. Incredibly different from him, but she had the ability to draw somebody in to her world. "I still have some time to kill so I might have a look around here for a bit."

"Alright. Well, have fun. It was nice meeting you."

"You too. Thank you for taking me here."

"No problem."

Raising her brows and biting her lip, Penny look around quickly. Then suddenly she was up on her tiptoes, planting a soft kiss on his lips in the middle of the classic novels section of the book store. Pulling back, she grinned at him.

"Bye, Leonard. Enjoy Omaha!"

Before he even had the chance to blink in surprise or say goodbye, she had skipped off, leaving Leonard simply standing there. A smile crept onto his face as he finally began to comprehend what had happened. Suddenly accompanying his mother to Omaha had just been made worth it.


End file.
